Rotary display-rack.



A. VANDERVELD.-

ROTARY DISPLAY RACK. APPLICATION FILED 001.18, 1913. RE1IEWEDIUNE10,1916. 1,243,014. Patented Oct, 16,1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1-.

WITNEssEs `9 E i,

A. VANDERVELD.

ROTARY DISPLAY RACK.

APPLICATION FILED ocT. I8. |913. IIENEWED IU'NE Io, 191s.

Patented 00h 1G, 1917.

2 sIIEETs-sIIEET 2 IMMI mwN-rom,

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f scription and drawingspin which,` i 1 'ANTHONY vnnnnnvnnn or cnaivnrnarins, MICHIGAN, Assis-Non rrod-GRAND lnur y.

HArIDssHow casa cor/Irenxorgc/HAND Harms, MICHIGAN, A conroimrrolvfV or' MICHIGAN. y p

ROTARY inspirar-RACK.

i' speciationstatesmen. y rammed oet. Ic, reir.

Application filed October 18, 1913, ,Serial No; 795,927. Renewed June 10,1916. i Serial No. 193,016.

To all whom/ may concern: f

Be- `it known 11 that :1,1, ANTHONY VANDER- vnLD, a citizenofthe United States, rand a resident of the city of Grand Rapids, in the` county of Kent and State of Michigan, have invented a certain new and useful Rotary` Display-Rack, of whichr the following is a specification fully disclosingV a comf plete and operative embodiment of the same,

such as will enableothers skilled in the art to make andj practise the same'.

\ This invention relates to display racks thatare mounted. so as to present different supporting portionszthereofto front position for display of and access to goods car-` riedtherebyhe supporting elements of the rack having `rotationabout a comparatively fixed supporting means. `It is the object of thisinvention to1provide the .rotary rack structure with :means to lock and hold itin place when a goods supportingpart thereof ispresented to front position best to display thef goods carried thereby, such locking means, however, being manually operabley for unlocking andfreeing-the `rack for rotation that othersupporting portions may be brought to frontposition and locked therein. More specifically, the rack includes sup- U porting partsfembodied as yrods or bars lo` 30 cated in parallelism-,and thelocking thereof in? xediposition is accomplished when the barin front positionk becomes located directly in front of and in a plane which is perpendicular` to the line of vision of a customer' standing before the central support ofthe rack so `that all goods carried by the rack are presented for inspection at substantially equal n advantage; and "the unlocking of i the `rack is accomplished. by the operator thereof: from: either end of therack bars or rods. It `is a `feature offthisinvention that on operating the unlockingmeans and usingthe4 necessary force to accomplish )1J it, the rack willimmediately rotate as soon 45 as the unlockingis accomplished so `that the one operation is `effective to bothunlock and rotatefthe rack;` Theaspeciliostructure by which thisis `.a`.ccornplislied-vtogether `with the other.` features enumerated and i many others ofk minorimportance not.: specifically pointed outis disclosed in the following de- ;@Figure lis alplam view oftheraclrythe goods lholding bars `thereof being shown `in section on a plane taken horizontally therethrough.- 1 Fig. 2 is a section on line afa, Figqlf Fig. 3 is asection on line c-c`, Fig. 2, the section being on a horizontal plane through the axis of a goods holding bar. Fig. a is a section on line e-`e, Fig. 3.

Similar reference numerals refer to simi.

lar parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

In specific construction-the rack includes a base l which issecured in any desired manner to a floor or other suitable supporting means andhas a post 2 ixed therein and extending upwardly for any desired distance, this base and post forming the support4 for the rotatable rack structure mounted thereon. The rotatable rack member is comprised of a tubular sleeve 3 extending overthe post and seated on ball bearings atv mounted on the post 2, the goods holding elements are rotatable about the post and in the absence of means to control such rotation will be freely rotatable.

Lockingmeans of the following construction is provided to normally retain the rotatable rack member in Afixed position with reference to the base 1 and post 2. The goods supporting bars 6 are Vformed as hollow tubesand midway between the ends of one of such bars, a member 7 is slidably mounted, such member in structure having endsS of a thickness nearly filling the rod 6` and a central section 9 of very meager crosssection compared with the ends 8, the ends being tapered asat 10 to reduce to said central section:` A slot 1l` extends from near one end `of the member 7 to near theother end thereof. An opening is formed 'in the side of the yrod 6 through which y.passes the iattened end` l2 of the locking-rod 13, this andfif `desired maybe formed to Fpassalong i f being'secnredto lthe rod `at its. other .end and '1 member.

therein-andi seatingina v-recessformed in the upper end of the post 2. There are,.tv,voo .2

these recesses 15 in the post beinliglocat'ed" diamerally..QPresitetefein- .spring` 15 l 'is se'cnredf at one i end tothe eas't comes adjacent the iattened end 12 thereof,

placed under tension thereby serving'tqconf tinuallygp'r'ess the endiof th'exrodrl against the postand seatingv itV ina .recess '.lfup'on cmingfthereto in the rotation VVof the. rackv lt will.y be Cleaemtherefore', that there.f.is .gpi-o-vided a. locking. .meansl acting automatically.. to lock the rack. .fro1n?..rota tionand one positively holding thezrack from rotation When the lockingrodis'seated infonezof therece'sses 115 inithezpost'.v 1

.When the-end of lthe rod 13 is seatedin a; recess .15, the .headlll'is located against;the. central section 9 of the. member'Zm-Sleciired to one `-end ofineinberf isa.fle2 1-ible device as a'smallmope or* cable. 16 ivhiclnextends to.

the end.; ofthe rod VG passing over :a .pulley 17. mounted the. endthereoif,.thencetov the end ofthe opposite barA .6. and'throughythe. length thereon'. beingguided over similar.

pulleys orrollers mounted :in the. ends there? i of,..thence backto. the Aopposite. end of. the irstbar. over va "similar, `pulley 17 ,to the opll psite.v end of the member 7' and havingcons. nection'Y therewith. Those Vsections '.Oflfthe.

` cable lying. between the ends of the V'rods l6 are provided with members 18,"there,being. tvvoaof such? members fon; each. section Tof the cable,-the location thereof being ashort dis; tance fromy the ends offthe :rods i6. Such members serve Aas. hand-holds 'to .be grasped by the hand of the operator- When pullingon the xcable. to. .unlock the rack for rotationas described below. 1. x Let it be supposed thattherotati-ng rack.

members are locked against rotation.A 'as shovvnzinligsf. 1 and 2. The goodsy support;

ed on ftheifrontzbar are in` bestdisplay.; posifl tion vand are .held therein. Iii the :goods :on therear bar are `t0 be seenand inspected,.the

i I rack -m`st.:be.frotate d and this is iaccoinfplished grasping.. a lmember 18V at either end :of ,fthebfront rack. .bar @andexertingY a pullr thereon. ...The cable. is; drawnx va-rnind' the-pulleys orrollers 1:7 and member 'Z vmovred` lengthwise-,ofthe rod .6 `im Whichit'. is mount+. ed,the'reby, forcinggheadl 14 .upononebf the. inelinesformed at. .one of' the tapering; por?. tions 10 of saidfmember Zand moving. -lockfi ing. rod 131.,bodily against the' Vtension; .of

springl funtil :it is;inovedsuiiiciently@to disengage theend thereoilfroni :the notch. 15I in which .it Lis seated. As: .soon as: isuch dis-'1 engagement" is effected,- the 'rack' starts 'to ,'ro,

teudeihriill be., .,gl. 16. l As soon as rotation is started and the eif Offre@ .13 taken away. fram .120.11.09 .01 15, the cablefvinaybe releasedjand 4the rods, ksach rotation coiiti'ii'ungfinitil .the rack" hasbeen rotated sufficiently to bring the;eivil-r fV tlocking rod 13 into ,position to ententliemot'her recess 15, spring 215.r there- .upon-causingthe rodftoent'er.ithegrecessf and stopping and locking the rack in fixed posi-l tion. Furthery rotationmayfbe accomplished.

by 'repeatingffthis. A."proeess', itfbeing V'immaterial Willfilflelfthe` LI''Cl .islprojeting fltom a Vffront bar 6 backward toiv'ard the central.

postior from airear bant orivard to such.

post, the unlockingioflthe device being peroY formed'in all instancesby .a lpnll onjth e cable from. in front .ofthe rack and. infa; forward.

direction'fthe, pull being `given vfrom either4 From the foregoing :itLWilll thatcl have 'made a :very simple. and easily Workiiig locking devices-.for rotary racks. which aotsl automatically.. tolzstopg. and lock be apparent' thearacf'k/from rotation `when '.itrre'aches eeri" tain predetermined positions .and ,one which. iseasilyfinanually'operatedto unlock and ref, tatejfthefrack. The. speciqjsitructnre fdis.V closed maybe varied inminor detail .withoiit departing frolnjlthe zinventionavhich is..de=.

supportLand'rack orf automatically 'locking f ioo the; raclcrinxed'position -relaitiveltolthe sup-'1v i port-,rA and nieanszfoii manually operating the locking; mechanism from.: a. pointrbetween f theends ofthe geodssuppo'rting rods.

In combination,arstationaryfsupport,"a Y .s

rack rotatably:mountedwthereon said rack in: clndingfg'oods: supporti-ng rods: mou'ntedxiin spacedtapart andrpaallel relatiomalocking rod. carried byY Y.the rack, recesses in tliefsup-t port: adapted .to receive. the'en-d'of .said/.locks ing rod,fme`ans.tending. toseat the endoftlie' locking rod. inzsaid recesses.and .means vman-Q. ually i operable fromr'adj acent either i endlof either 1goods snpportiiig rod forunserm-'tingVIV ipaaoia the .locking rod from the recesses and freeing the rack for rotation.

1l. In combination, a stationary support, a rack rotatably mounted thereon said rack including hollow goods supporting rods positioned in spaced apart relation, recesses provided in the support, locking means carried by the rack adapted to engage the recesses and hold the rack against rotation, a flexible member threaded through the goods supporting rods, and means connected thereto and operable by the fiexible member to cause the disengagement of the locking means from the recesses, thereby freeing the rack for rotation.

5. ln combination, a stationary support, a rack rotatably mounted thereon said rack including hollow goods supporting rods positioned in spaced apart relation, recesses formed in the support, a locking rod carried bythe rack having one end thereof adapted to seat in the recesses thereby locking the rack against rotation, and having the other end received within one of the goods supporting rods, flexible member threaded through the said goods supporting rods and means connected thereto and movable back and forth in one of* the goodsk supporting rods with the movement of the flexible member, said means having operative engagement with` the locking rod to move it longitudinally when moved in either direction thereby freeing the recesses of the locking rod and freeing the rack for rotation.

6. In combination, a stationary support, a rack rotatably mounted thereon said rack including hollow goods supporting rods positioned in parallel Vand spaced apart relation, recesses formed in the support, a-locking rod carried by the rack and having one end thereof adapted to seat in the recesses thereby locking the rack against rotation, said rod at its other end extending Within one of said goods supporting rods and having a head formed thereon, a member mounted Within said goods supporting rod having cam surfaces at either side of` the head whereby movement of said member in either direction will serve to draw the rod outwardly and disengage it from a recess in which it may be seated, and a flexible member connected to one end ofy said member, threaded through the goods supporting rods and back to the other end of said member and secured thereto, whereby movement may be imparted to said member from adjacent either end of either goods supporting rod. I 7. In combination, a stationary support, a rack mounted thereon, said rack including rods spaced apart, at least one of which is hollow, means whereby said rack may be rotated about itsysupport, recesses formed in the support, a rod seated at one end within the hollow rod and at the other end adapted to seat in one of said recesses in the support, and means within the hollow" rod for operating the rod to unseat it from the recess and free the rack for rotation.

ln testimony whereof, Ihave hereunto affixed my signature inthe presence of tWo witnesses.

ANTHONY VANDERVELD.

l/Vitnesses:

FRANK E. LIVERANGE, Jr., L. E. CURRAN.

Copies ofths patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

